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{{trope}}{{Needs Image}}
{{quote|''"A good boss gruntles the disgruntled."''
|'''Michael Scott''', ''[[The Office]]''}}
The [[Benevolent Boss]] is that rarity in the [[Work Com]]: a superior who is actually superior, a nice guy who listens to employee problems and really cares about the issues of [[Nice to
Contrast with [[Bad Boss]] and [[Stupid Boss]]. Compare [[Reasonable Authority Figure]]. In more fantastic works, this character usually comes in the form of [[Big Good]].
One of the biggest arguments for why [[Machiavelli Was Wrong]]. In [[The Army]], he is often [[The Captain]], [[Majorly Awesome]], [[Colonel Badass]], [[The Brigadier]], or even the [[Four
For some lucky workers, this is [[Truth in Television]]. For a lot of other people, this is [[Blatant Lies|some sort of malicious fantasy]].
{{examples}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* Kiichi Goto, ''[[Patlabor]]''.
* Detective Superintendent Yagami in ''[[
* Tsunade toward [[Naruto]]; among other things, letting him call her Tsunade-no-baachan (Grandma Tsunade) instead of the formal Hokage-sama and letting him ''officially'' go on missions to find Sasuke (who is officially a rogue ninja and has a death penalty on him) ''whenever Naruto asks for it''.
** Most of the Hokages seem to have been this. Even the one who {{spoiler|invented Edo Tensei, since he was willing to sacrifice himself to save his subordinates.}} Goes hand in hand with the "Will of Fire".
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** Likewise, Ling [[Let's Get Dangerous|gets dangerous]] whenever his underlings are in danger. {{spoiler|It should really be no surprise when these two join forces... [[Split Personality Takeover|so]] [[Super-Powered Evil Side|to]] [[Heel Face Turn|speak]].}}
* En from ''[[Dorohedoro]]'' is one scary guy, but otherwise quite nice to his subordinates.
* Chief Aramaki
* Haruo Niijima ''[[Kenichi:
* Dutch from ''[[Black Lagoon]]''.
** And Balalaika, both to her own gang and her outsourced labor, the crew of the Lagoon.
* Nanoha Takamachi of ''[[
* In a bit of a contrast to [[Real Life]] pirates, the most successful crews in ''[[
* Although he does make a rather [[Comedic Sociopathy|worrying]] decision regarding the main characters' privacy in the [[Omake]], the producer of Chou-Hayaoki from ''[[The Weatherman Is My Lover]]'' comes off as this sort of boss.
* Tsuna Sawada of ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]''.
** Also Dino, to the point that he's at his strongest if his subordinates are around and he's also completely useless if they're not around. Fuuta's rankings also show that he's the #1 boss that cares about the well-being of both his subordinates and civilians.
* ''[[Sailor Moon]]'': Although the show's other bosses are ''spectacularly'' [[Bad Boss|Bad]], Professor Tomoe stands out as the only decent employer. True, he may not ''care'' about his [[The Dragon|Dragon]] or [[Quirky Miniboss Squad]], but the worst any of them get is a scolding. ([[No Honor Among Thieves|Though what they give]] [[Murder Is the Best Solution|each other is another]] [[Self
* Omega from ''[[
* Kohta's boss in ''[[My Balls]]'' takes him out for drinks several times and one time even takes him to a brothel (the boss pays for all of it each time).
* Ciel Phantomhive from the ''[[Black Butler]]'' manga shows that you can be a Benevolent Boss even if you are a [[Villain Protagonist]]. In the anime this doesn't show quite as clearly, as Ciel there is both less evil and more aloof, though he still treats his servants well. The manga on the other hand goes as far as to have a chapter in which Ciel goes shopping in London with his servants and buys them gifts.
== [[Comic Books]] ==
* Commissioner Jim Gordon in the ''[[
* Perry White in ''[[Superman]]''.
** [[Lex Luthor]] is also sometimes this, [[Depending
* His [[Alternate Company Equivalent]], [[Spider-Man|J. Jonah Jameson]], is a subversion. He's a great (yet gruff) boss who protects his employees from various super-villain attacks (namely that guy who takes the great photos of Spider-Man), but hates Spidey's guts. Unfortunately, the two people are one and the same.
** [[Depending
** He also anonymously pays for his employees' defense attorneys if any of them are ever charged with a crime.
* Surprisingly, the Penguin in ''[[Gotham Underground]]'' when he is about to [[Face Death
== [[
* Ami in ''[[
== [[Film]] ==
* El Guapo from ''[[¡Three Amigos
* Lord Summerisle in ''[[The Wicker Man]]'' is also a rare villainous example.
* Joe in ''[[Empire Records]]''. He's basically a father figure to all his young employees, and a legal foster father to one of them.
* Gru in ''[[
* In the ''[[Richie Rich (comics)|Richie Rich]]'' movie, Richie's dad is a firm believer in not firing employees, claiming that job security makes better and happier workers. The one exception he makes is the [[Big Bad]].
* [[Big Bad|Ursula]] from ''[[The Little Mermaid]]'' is a villainous example. She treats her two eels, Flotsam and Jetsam, [[Mama Bear|like her own children]], and goes into a [[Make My Monster Grow|gigantic]] [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]] when they're killed in the final battle (by her own friendly fire, when Ariel threw her aim off of Eric).
* [["Weird Al" Yankovic
== Literature ==
* [[The Thrawn Trilogy|Grand Admiral Thrawn]] was far too remote from his troops to really qualify as a father figure. His image was of an alien genius, [[Bunny Ears Lawyer|strange but far too skilled to be brushed aside]]. But he wasn't unnecessarily cruel to the people on his side, he rewarded quick thinking, his [[Commander Contrarian]] pretty much adored him, and Thrawn was respected and trusted. Thrawn used a small measure of fear, certainly: the Grand Admiral realized that [[You Have Failed Me...|fear of failure]] was a powerful motivating force in a military the size of the Empire. But Thrawn's ability to invoke a sense of ''pride'' in his troops was his most powerful asset. Palpatine inspired arrogance and callousness in his officers; Thrawn made his men proud to be Imperial soldiers. Thrawn's officers would have willingly died for the Grand Admiral.
** Repeatedly, some of his
** This goes into [[Moment of Awesome]] territory when he ''promotes'' a subordinate who failed to capture Luke Skywalker, but both admitted his failure and showed innovative thinking. Thrawn's XO Pellaeon notes immediately afterward that the crew of the ''Chimera'' had respected Thrawn before, but now they'd die for him.
* A classic example is Mr. Fezziwig from ''[[A Christmas Carol]]'', the good-natured employer of
{{quote|
** Scrooge himself becomes this to Bob Cratchit in the end.
*
* From the ''[[Harry Potter (
** Also, when Dobby (A [[Non-Human Sidekick]] of sorts) comes to work at Hogwarts and asks for both holidays and paid work (something that has never happened before), he agrees straight away and offers more then a considerable fair wage.
*
** One of the reasons many of the Guard left during Fred Colon's tenure was because he made racist comments while members of said races where standing feet away from him. When it's pointed out to them that Vimes makes similar comments all the time, they say that they don't mind when Vimes does it, for the reason mentioned above.
*** As far as Sam Vimes is concerned, the race of any Watchman is Watchman.
* From [[Charles Stross]]'s ''[[The Laundry Series]]'', [[The Spymaster|Angleton]] is an interesting example: he sits square in the [[Uncanny Valley]] and manages to [[Good Is Not Nice|frighten the hell out of nearly everyone he works with]], including the narrator, Bob. He is also scarily competent and intelligent at his job and respects the same traits in others, has been known to [[Pet the Dog|occasionally pull a few strings]] for Bob's sake, and [[Dissonant Serenity|holds up well]] in high-stress situations. {{spoiler|This is explained in the third novel, ''The Fuller Memorandum'': Angleton is actually a [[Humanoid Abomination]], summoned in the 1930s, who has effectively "[[Humanity Is Infectious|gone native]]". Bob believes that the reason Angleton is directing [[The Men in Black|the Laundry]] as well as he is is that he sees it as his personal best chance of survival, not to mention his own acquired senses of morality and fairness.}}
* Leonard Stecyk in [[The Pale King]].
* In [[Gene Stratton Porter]]'s ''[[
{{quote|
* Dirk Struan from [[Asian Saga|''Tai-Pan'']] is a self-made man who started out as a cabin boy under a tyrannical captain. When he becomes a ship owner, he pays wages on the day, in silver, and equips his ships with the best of everything. Sailors fight for the chance to work aboard one of his ships.
== [[Live Action TV]] ==
* Just about every serial crime drama and occupational drama on English-speaking television, such as ''[[Law
** Capt. Donald Cragen of ''[[Law and Order Special Victims Unit]]'' is portrayed as a somewhat stern but understanding father figure who gives the detectives a great deal of leniency because he trusts their ability to get results.
** Conrad Ecklie in ''[[CSI]]'' grew into the role over time. When he first got promoted to Assistant Director in season 5, he had a very rocky relationship with Grissom and his crew (''especially'' Grissom), which eventually led to Ecklie splitting the team up. It begins to change in the season 5 finale, when Nick gets kidnapped and buried underground, as he becomes vital to the investigation and eventual rescue. Since then his relationship with the crew has become more cordial and he's given them far more leeway than he used to.
* Jed Bartlet, ''[[The West Wing]]''.
** Leo McGarry as well, excepting Season 5.
* Walter Skinner in ''[[The X
* The Boss, ''[[Highway to Heaven]]''.
* Rear Admiral A.J. Chegwidden and his successor Major General Gordon Cresswell in ''[[
** Also Secretary of the Navy Edward Sheffield.
* Jack Donaghy, from ''[[30
** He may be more of a [[Trickster Mentor]] to Liz and the TGS crew. [[If It's You It's Okay|His secretary Jonathan, on the other hand...]]
* Jean-Luc Picard, ''[[Star Trek:
** Although Picard exemplified this trope, all the ''[[
** Admiral Forrest, Starfleet's Chief of Operations, in ''[[Star Trek
* General Hammond, ''[[Stargate SG-1]]''; as O'Neill once noted, "He's a teddy bear."
{{quote|
** General Landry followed a similar vein in seasons 9 and 10.
** And then you had Elizabeth Weir and Colonel Carter in ''[[
*** And Richard Woolsey.
* Edward James Olmos as Bill Adama
** Also as Lt. Castillo from ''[[Miami Vice]]''.
* Dave Nelson, ''[[News Radio]]''.
* David Brent and Michael Scott from the British and U.S. versions (respectively) of ''[[The Office]]'' ''think'' they're being benevolent, but are so bad at it they wind up being the [[Stupid Boss]] instead. Michael comes closest, even having moments where he actually is helpful. (Supporting Pam after her failed art gallery show, for instance.)
** David on the other hand gets ''extremely'' angry and defensive when his "advice" is rejected or disputed.
* Col. Henry Blake and, even moreso, Colonel Potter on ''[[
* President David Palmer from ''[[
** President Allison Taylor seems to be heading this way as well.
** Bill Buchanan. And now we have Brian Hastings.
* Lt. Al "Gee" Giardello in ''[[Homicide: Life
* Jack Gallo, ''[[Just Shoot Me]]''.
* Stanford Wedeck, ''[[
* Isaac Jaffee, ''[[Sports Night]]''.
* Will Butler, ''[[Less Than Perfect]]''. Can cause subversions because he's nice only to his direct employees and indifferent to everybody else.
* In ''[[Primeval]]'', Lester is really a fairly Benevolent Boss hiding behind a [[Jerkass Facade]]. However it is clear when he offers to let a temporarily homeless [[Plucky Comic Relief|Connor]] stay at his place, and after he was forced to undergo a [[Ten
* Lou Grant, from ''[[The Mary Tyler Moore Show]]'', spunk-hating notwithstanding.
* Adelle DeWitt from ''[[Dollhouse]]'' is an odd
* Sam Merlotte from ''[[True Blood]]'' is a good boss, a great friend, and a {{spoiler|kickass shapeshifter}}.
* Siegfried Farnon from ''[[
* In ''[[Castle]]'', Beckett's boss, Captain Montgomery, is just awesome. He also has the [[Bald of Awesome]].
* Paul Lewiston of ''[[Boston Legal]]'' may be the frustrated [[Only Sane Man]] in a firm made up of gun-toting, sex-addicted, [[Character Filibuster|filibustering]], cross-dressing, midget-fetishising [[Bunny Ears Lawyer
** Alan Shore, one of the aforementioned sex-addicted, [[Character Filibuster|filibustering]], cross-dressing, midget-fetishising [[Bunny Ears Lawyer
* Arthur Carlson in ''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]'' isn't an ''effective'' boss, but he's well-meaning and treats his employees with respect. Even [[Jerk with a Heart of Jerk|Herb]].
* Rube in ''[[Dead Like Me]]'' is a [[Jerk
* Roz from ''[[Raising the Bar]]'' from the public defenders' office, as a nice counterpart to [[Handsome Lech|prosecutors']] [[Amoral Attorney|boss Nick]].
* Mr. Bellamy from ''[[Upstairs, Downstairs]]''.
* Mayor Richard Wilkins from ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' is a swell guy to work for. He's always got a kind word, he asks after your family, he encourages good dental hygiene and good nutrition, and he discourages swearing and encourages teamwork and esprit de corps. He'll even pay for a new wardrobe and an apartment if you happen to be a homeless psychotic slayer in need of an outlet for your violent tendencies! Oh, and he wants to transform into a giant snake demon and eat everyone in the city. But what boss is perfect, right?
* Cam Saroyan on ''[[Bones]]'', pretty much. She's professional at work, but is still pretty
== [[Video Games]] ==
* While not necessarily a very good boss, Two-Face from ''[[Batman: Arkham City
** There was that one time he cut a peon in half for [[You Have Failed Me...|screwing up an order,]] but that's a triviality, really.
* In the ''[[Disgaea]]'' series, both Laharl and Mao's fathers were very good to work under. Valvatorez is, too; just ask his Prinnies.
** The old dean of Evil Academy was so good, in fact, that the evil reputation was used as a defense mechanism to keep idiot heroes out. The one hero it should have kept out, however, was far more worthy of this forged reputation.
{{quote|
* Would you believe Geese Howard from ''[[Fatal Fury
*
* Salieri in ''[[Mafia:
* Captain Elleanor Varrot from ''[[Valkyria Chronicles]]''.
* The Illusive Man of ''[[Mass Effect]]'' is an [[Affably Evil]] boss who is genuinely supportive and helpful towards his subordinates in every way possible and is never anything less than completely supportive and trusting of Shepard's actions and decisions (until a certain one comes up, however). Hell, he calls Shepard just before Shepard launches what is by all accounts going to be a suicide mission to offer moral support and show concern for Shepard's safety. Just don't betray him. [[You Have Failed Me...|Bad idea]].
** Shepard him/herself can be played as a Benevolent Boss. S/he can look out for each newly recruited team member, and can make side trips that help each member with what are really personal issues. When people are kidnapped by the minions of the [[Big Bad]], [[Papa Wolf|Shepard is able to]] [[Mama Bear|make a suicide run to try and save them.]] {{spoiler|And if you're a good enough boss, you can save most of the kidnapees and your entire assault team.}} Of course, Shepard could also be played as a [[Jerkass|colossal dickosaurus]].
** Admiral Hackett from the first game also counts. He compliments Shepard upon successful completion of certain side missions, and in the second game, it's revealed {{spoiler|he's the sole reason the Alliance isn't trying to arrest and interrogate you}}.
* Bowser of ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'' is this in the RPGs. He's generally beloved by his troops who follow him out of admiration rather than fear, has a [[True Companions]]-like bond with them and in ''[[
* Yuri from ''[[Infinite Space]]''. Bastian even notes this is the reason why he is a better captain than his rival, since Yuri forms a bond with his crews rather than simply treating them as the power to run his ship. In terms of gameplay, choosing the "benevolent" options will usually give pretty nice stat bonuses.
* Inspector Chelmey, the [[Inspector Lestrade]] [[Expy]] from the ''[[Professor Layton]]'' series, reveals himself to be this in the third game. He admits to Layton that his right-hand officer, Constable Barton, makes a metric ton of mistakes and probably should have been fired — but Chelmey will not allow him to be, because Barton tries hard and means well and Chelmey trusts and is fond of him.
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* [[Metal Gear|Big Boss]] arguably qualifies for Outer Heaven and Zanzibar Land, as many of the soldiers seem to praise him.
* In ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'', General Leo qualifies for this trope, though he is not a boss in the video game sense. When he is first seen by the party he shows his benevolent nature by refusing to let his soldiers charge recklessly at the enemy, determined to minimize casualties on both sides. He later shows modesty when he tells Terra he is no better than Kefka (the main villain in the game) because he allowed him to get away with his crimes. He is killed by Kefka during his short time being controlled by the player.
* Yamato from ''[[Devil Survivor 2]]'' is an interesting play of this trope. He is a [[Jerkass]] who calls his subordinates "trashes" and he treats his subordinates like tools. On the other hand, he is a fair boss. He treats those who can do their jobs well nicely and he doesn't chew or punish employees that fail to do their jobs, but simply reassigns them to less demanding tasks. He doesn't throw his subordinates' lives needlessly and he doesn't hide behind them. No wonder why the
== [[Web Original]] ==
* Lord Doom, an [[Evil Overlord]] active in the ''[[Global Guardians PBEM Universe]]''. His henchmen and operatives are well-paid and enjoy excellent benefits (including total-coverage health insurance, college tuition assistance, low-interest housing loans, a retirement plan, and a generous life-insurance policy. They also know that if they are ever arrested, all they need do is keep their mouths shut and Doom will use his vast resources to get them the best legal help in the world. Of course, if they ''do'' talk to the cops, things go ''very'' different.
* ''[[Whateley Academy]]'' has several examples:
** Franklin Delarose, (unpowered) chief of security at [[Super
** See also Dr. Diabolik, a world-known supervillain... whose exploits are always intended, somehow, for the good of humanity. He treats his troops so well that ''none'' of them have ever cut a deal with the cops, and they're always broken out of jail, or represented brilliantly in court.
** Elizabeth Carson, headmistress of Whateley Academy. Even if some of her teachers and staff are ex-supervillains.
** Ayla Goodkind/Phase is already a Benevolent Boss, despite being a freshman (technically he's repeating stuff that he's already done). He was being bullied for being transgendered, so he hired a security firm to dig up info on the bully's family, bought the debt that they owed, then threatened to ruin them financially. When the bully relented and apologized, he set up a way for him to free his family of
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* Nosfera from ''[[Nosfera]]'' truly seems to care about her minions and servants, and becomes furious when Seymour harms them.
* Dora Bianchi in ''[[Questionable Content]]''. After all, only an all-around really cool person would name her shop "[[Doomy Dooms of Doom|Coffee of Doom]]".
** Given she only employs three of her own friends, perhaps not so surprising. Marten's bosses have a tendency towards this trope though ([[Gay Best Friend|among others]]).
* ''[[Punch an' Pie]]'' plays with this trope in the parallel story arcs regarding Angela's boss George and Heather's boss Brian. George is a [[Jerkass]] that nobody in the store likes, while Brian is a cheerful and upbeat guy who is naturally likable. Both of them end up in compromising sexual situations with their employees. George decides to [[Take a Third Option]] and [[Pet the Dog]], resolving his conflict to the benefit of all; Brian, on the other hand, turns bureaucratic (albeit with a helping of regret) when confronted with conflict.
** Then there's Angela's beloved former boss Dawna, pretty much a paragon of motherliness and benevolence.
* ''[[Mike: Bookseller]]'' has Fab, who is smart, reasonable, and well-liked by his employees.
* Lawrence Sanderson, ''[[Something
* ''[[
* In ''[[Wapsi Square]]'', Monica's boss, despite his slight ineptitude at times, genuinely cares about the museum employees, and even set Monica up with her boyfriend Kevin. In addition, Heather's boss once told her that she had spent too much time working, and that she needed to go out and have fun (yes it was a direct order).
** Tina the demonic barrista is this to her assistant. Whether she's the owner of the coffee shop or an employee herself is still nebulous.
* Zig Zag, founder of the porn studio "Double Z Studios" from the webcomic ''[[Sabrina Online]]
== [[Western Animation]] ==
*
** Hank Scorpio. Great boss, offers terrific pensions and dental plans, even if [[Affably Evil|he happened to be running a criminal empire]]. He even manages to find time to console Homer while in the middle of heated fight with government agents ("Oh, and if you want to kill someone on your way out, you'd help me a lot," he adds) and later gives Homer the Denver Broncos as a going away present. Homer had really wanted to own the Dallas Cowboys, but while Scorpio couldn't get them, he was the only one who ever told him that his dream to own them wasn't crazy.
** [[Depending
** Smithers once attempted to become this after briefly being placed as Burns' temporary replacement after Burns was arrested for a theft of paintings, but after Homer, Lenny and Carl started mocking him behind his back about his allowing them to essentially goof off... well, [[Bad Boss|you get the picture]].
** Homer himself played it quite straight when he became CEO and overthrew Mr. Burns, until he realized that he was missing out on his family, in which case, he gave the position back to Mr. Burns.
* [[Transformers|Optimus Prime]] (And [[Beast Wars
* J. Gander Hooter from ''[[Darkwing Duck]]'': Absent-minded, a bit on the eccentric side, but an effective and fair mission control to Darkwing and the agents of S.H.U.S.H., generous with praise and sternly serious about getting results on protecting the world from F.O.W.L.
* Commander Joseph Walsh from ''[[
* Rebecca Cunningham from ''[[
* Bruce Wayne's Benevolent Boss qualities are shown in ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'', most overtly in "Mean Seasons". After he finds out that his senior manager Bernie Benson is retiring due his company's mandatory retirement rule, despite the fact that he clearly loves his job and doesn't want to leave, Bruce starts to see how similar it is to how unfairly Calendar Girl was treated, neglected simply because she was considered too old for the career she loved. Eventually, Bruce decides to change the retirement policy, telling Bernie, much to his delight, he can do his job for as long as he is able.
* Iroh from ''[[
* In the original ''[[
* Jerrica "[[Jem]]" Benton could be one for ''Starlight Music''
▲* Jerrica "[[Jem]]" Benton could be one for ''Starlight Music'' -- she is the CEO after the [[Five Episode Pilot]].
== Real Life ==
* Besides gaining a reputation for durable and stylish footwear, the Filipino shoe brand Ang Tibay (lit. So Durable or It's Durable) was also lauded for the company's treatment of its employees. According to one article,<ref>[https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/modern-living/2002/04/20/157909/way-we-wore The Way We Wore]</ref> company founder Teodoro Toribio spared no expense at looking after his workers as not only was the work facilities at his [[Art Deco]]-inspired factory well-lit and ventilated, Toribio had recreational facilities installed such as an employee lounge and even a bowling alley (decades before such facilities became common in companies such as [[Ubisoft]] and [[Facebook]] among others), and provided housing near the factory premises. It helps that Toribio lived a [[Rags to Riches]] story himself, knowing how it felt like to be impoverished and thus gave back to those who have been in the same situation as he was prior to his success.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Characters As Device]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Alliterative Trope Titles]]
[[Category:Benevolent Boss]]
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